North Carolina Miscellany
“This whole operation depends on uniformity of carcass. Everything – hogs per lot, feeding, hours of daylight and dark – is geared to producing hogs that are of uniform carcass. That way, when we process, the machinery needs calibrating only once. Margins are thin, and profitability depends on uniformity of carcass.”
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“What she said.” Dwight drew on his cigarette. “You try talking her out of it?” “That’s not my job. I’m a mere scrivener.” Dwight grunted and pitched his cigarette butt before advising Mitch he might want his hanky for the next part. They walked through the yard and entered the nearest barn. From the overhead platform on which they stood, Mitch looked down on the writhing mass. What he saw looked like maggots on putrefying flesh. Without his handkerchief, the dust alone would have choked him. “As they grow,” Dwight explained, “we move the survivors to the next building and so on. Momma tell you why?” “Said your brother’s boy came out gay.” “C’mon,” Dwight said. “I’ll show you where we contain the run-off. The thing is, Bryce is just a kid. What’s he know? This year he’s gay, next year he’s crazy for some girl.” COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
Breathe, 2012 (oil on canvas, 18x24) by Frank Holliday